California Coastline Tour: Monterey, Carmel, 17-Mile Drive

Embark on a breathtaking 11-hour tour along California’s scenic coastline, visiting iconic landmarks such as the Monterey Bay Aquarium, Pebble Beach Golf Course, and Carmel-by-the-Sea. Indulge in unique shopping, historical landmarks, and mouth-watering culinary innovation.

Duration: 11 hours
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • Pacific Coast Highway - The lighthouse, constructed in 1871, serves as a guiding beacon for ships navigating the Pacific coast of California. It proudly stands as the tallest lighthouse along the West Coast of the United States and continues to play an active role in assisting the Coast Guard in navigation.
    During the journey, travelers will have…
What's Included
  • Transport by air-conditioned luxury motor-coach with a professional guide
  • Day-trip to Monterey and Carmel
  • 2 hours stop at Monterey Bay
  • 1 hour stop at Carmel by the Sea
  • Entrance fee for the 17-Mile Drive Included
  • Stops at Pigeon Point Lighthouse, Pebble Beach, Bird Rock and the Lone Cypress
What's Not Included
  • Gratuities
  • Food and drinks
  • Hotel Pick-up & drop-off
  • Monterey Bay Aquarium
Additional Information

Embark on the tranquil journey along California’s splendid coastline, starting from San Francisco. Traverse along the renowned Highway 1, making stops at Pigeon Point Lighthouse and Davenport for a short coffee break and snacks. Continue the journey passing by Monterey Bay and Peninsula, and visit the illustrious Monterey Bay Aquarium and Steinbeck’s…

Location
478 Post St
Post Street
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.2
(2133 Ratings)
5 stars
4 stars
3 stars
2 stars
1 star
Jasmin_m
Jul 30, 2025
Great day out - Great experience and great driver who was very knowledgeable about the area! He was so friendly and pleasant
Review provided by Viator
Frank_m
Jul 23, 2025
Great adventure for first time SF visitors. - Such a beautiful drive down the coast and into Monterey and Carmel. We saw parts of California we would have never seen in our own and our bus driver/guide was great and very knowledgeable on the local history. Sit on the right side facing the coast. The running options in Monterrey were endless and all looked great. 100% worth the price of the ticket. The bus was comfortable and clean.
Review provided by Viator
Teresa_w
Jul 23, 2025
So much fun - Fantastic driver. Not enough time in Carmel - too much time in Monterey. Bathroom on the bus could have been cleaned. And the bus driver should tell folks there is a bathroom on the bus. Some folks didn’t know.
Review provided by Viator
Constance_b
Jul 23, 2025
Most romantic trip ever and you need this for your soul - wow one of the best bus tours ever ( I don't like group travel or bus tours) the most romantic trip by the water you can take great - awesome - wonderful tour guide THANK YOU!!!! breathtaking views and great knowledge about the area from our very sweet french tour guide I wish I could go again You have to experience this trip and you will be in love with Californian and San Francisco forever Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for this wonderful trip and experience we will never forget
Review provided by Viator
Jonathan_s
Jul 20, 2025
Great trip down the coast in a rickety bus - The trip was excellent and our guide Don was very knowledgeable and organised, giving us time in Monterey and Carmel, in a busy schedule. Not Don’s fault, but the bus wasn’t in great condition. The upper front window was cracked, and every time we hit a bump in the road I thought the suspension was about to give way. But an excellent trip nonetheless.
Review provided by Viator
Candice_j
Jul 15, 2025
Don’t hesitate, schedule this day trip - Knowledgeable tour guide Articulate & great song lists Agenda engaging Good use of time to see & do many things
Review provided by Viator
Cathylk7915he
Jul 23, 2025
It was a good trip and good value! - Trip was all day but time went fast! Guide Danilo, was excellent! Just the right amount of knowledgeable, pleasant, and patient! I would have given it 5 star but our pickup place was downtown San Francisco. Parking was difficult for me as I was not staying in the city. It was my first time there! Downtown is full of homeless and drug addicted people. It was plain to see in the morning and in the evening when I returned. I was concerned as I had to make my way back to the parking garage on my own. I didn’t have any problems but wondering why they don’t pick up in a place with easier parking and less threatening environment. I know I hear consistently not to leave your valuables where anyone can see them in your car in all this part of California. It’s unpleasant to have to be so on guard when on vacation.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
263manuellet
Jul 20, 2025
Nice Views and Thomas was an Interesting Guide, but insulted passenger badly and didn't stick to advertised itinerary. - Reflecting on the tour, there were pretty sites to take pictures of and fun times. Thomas the tour guide and driver was interesting and fairly knowledgeable. I give three stars for that reason. There were a couple major problems: 1. I paid $65 for a ticket to the Monterey Bay Aquarium several days in advance as told necessary if you wanted to visit the aquarium. The itinerary said there would be two hours of time in Monterey. However, Thomas the tour guide and driver only gave us one and a half hours and there was very little time to walk around the aquarium after spending over thirty minutes in line and over ten minutes walking to the end of the line. The itinerary Viator advertises should be followed especially when plans are made based on it. 2. I was personally insulted on a number of occasions by Thomas the tour guide and driver by things he said when talking to the group and I also heard him say mean things about me to the two women seated behind him. This is not okay. 3. Another issue was the stairs getting on and off the bus are dangerous. One or two occasions it appeared as though the bottom step wasn't as steep. I know some buses can adjust that. The bottom step should have been adjusted closer to the ground on all occasions. I am glad to have taken this trip, and I do recommend it.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Bingqing_s
Jul 24, 2025
Our guide is Don who is... - Our guide is Don who is so perfect and professional , and so beautiful of Monterey, 17-mile, and Carmel. Not Don’s fault, but the bus wasn’t in great condition. The upper front window was cracked, and every time we hit a bump in the road. I have read the review before but it's not been improved. And Don had to emergency stop two times for closing door in second times. There is obviously something wrong with the electric door, and Don needed to close the door manually every time. I'm very nervous for that.
Review provided by Viator
Flyer17951951963
Jul 17, 2025
HORRIBLE 'TOUR' - I would NOT reccommend this tour AT ALL. Our driver was Jerry S. He was TERRIBLE. This tour doesn't take you to the nice stops because 'they won't let us stop in the vans' at those stops. Instead they stop at: - an ugly beach - and a smelly rock (bird rock was DISGUSTING. I don't know why they include that as one of the few stops we got. It was the most disgusting smell, and he mentioned seals are usually all on the rock out there, but you couldn't see them if they were there, you could hear them...so why include that as one of the precious few stops we get???), - then in Monterey they PUSH the aquarium and drop you off FAR from the original wharf, - and same in Carmel- he mentions the road to walk down to the beach that is a mile from where he showed us the road, the drove at least another mile in the OPPOSITE direction, past all of the adorable buildings and into the very boring modern area. Also- the description of this tour says it is an 11 hour tour. WRONG. It lasted 13 hours! That made for a very long and stressful day, much longer than expected. AND no bathroom break on the 3 hours back to drop us off. UNACCEPTABLE. And one of the stops on the way towards Monterey was AT A GROCERY STORE!!!!! To get food and use the bathrooms. I paid this much money for one of the stops to be a grocery store?????? And that was to be a stop we paid for??????????? He would mention random things about the area we were going through, and then say 'I don't know why'. For ex, he would say the area sold a lot of avacados, then say 'I don't know why though, maybe they grow a lot of them here? I don't know.' Isn't that YOUR JOB to know??? You are a tour guide through this area, you just bragged that you have been working for 3 years, listed how many times you've been to all the places you drive to, one of them he said he has driven to over 300 times!, and yet you STILL don't know the facts about the areas you are PAID to tour us through??? Why are we paying for a driver and not a tour guide???? Other tours I've been on have a driver AND a tour guide, this one only had the 'driver'. And if we had any questions, too bad. He said he couldn't hear us with all the noise that was up front. Right, that's why we pay to have a SEPARATE driver AND a tour guide. The van got really hot SEVERAL times, and we had to ask repeatedly to get some fresh air. He was annoyed and said he only had one setting, and every time we stopped he would not restart the a/c and we would have to ask again. The MOST important--- I have life360 and this driver had 84 OCCURENCES!!!! Hard braking, swerving in and out of lanes, not ONCE did he use a turn signal. And the whole time he talked about his bike and how this tour would be great on a bike. None of us cared! tHIS WASN'T A MOTORCYLE TOUR! At one point there was traffic and an ambulance went by, and he GOT BEHIND THE AMBULANCE and followed them past a ton of traffic. I don't know if that is illegal, but when you are working as a professional driver and you dare to make a move like that WHILE IN YOUR PROFESSIONAL ROLE AS A DRIVER?????? Absolutely unacceptable. I'm not from California, so I traveled all the way across the country to pay for a tour that I could have done on my own, much cheaper and MUCH more enjoyable. This tour was a complete waste of time and money.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
From $139
up to 15 guests
1 - Adult
Cancellation: Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start of your experience (local time).